Will pot legalization help decline Border and Immigration corruption?
A precautionary tale about where to buy your marijuana or a huge reason marijuana needs to be legalized?
You can blame it on the times we live in, saying that people are getting desperate and this is what they turn to. Or you can say it’s one of the oldest stories in the book. Either way you look at it I think this is an example of what can happen when you let prohibition get in the way.
A few days ago a deportation officer with the U.S Immigration & Customs Enforcement office was retained in connection with illegally obtaining and transporting large quantities of marijuana.
He may have taken it from illegal immigrants in exchange for turning a blind eye to their border crossing. All that’s known for sure is that he initially started getting tracked after an informant called the 34 yr old, Jason Lowery to pick up 500 lbs of pot.
The Department of Public Safety and federal agents tried to pull Lowery over after he pick up the weed. Lowery let the agents on a 45 min. chase that sometimes reached 110 miles per hour. During this time he was throwing bundles of marijuana out the window. Of the 14 in the truck he got 10 out the window. The chase came to a close when he crashed his truck and surrendered.
This type of occurrence isn’t really unheard of with customs officers and Border Patrol agents, from 2003 to early 2010 there have been 129 arrests on corruption charges. This information comes from Tom Frost, who is an assistant inspector general for investigations for the Department of Homeland Security.
Another notable recent case is about Michael Atondo. He was a Border Patrol agent who was found guilty of trafficking weed in southwestern Arizona. He was arrested with 745 pounds in his vehicle, and will be sentenced in Jan.
These men aren’t monsters. While some of the 129 arrested are members of drug cartels that infiltrate our agencies, most are just people trying to make a living. In these frustrating economic times the temptation to make these huge amounts of extra money is just sometimes too great.
If anything I think this screams to the fact that marijuana needs to be legalized. These men were not found with crank, cocaine or other substances, just pot. If it were legalized there would be no temptation. These drug cartels would have a huge part of their monies and influence shut down. There would be no need for them.
Yes, there needs to be a plan in place, who can grow, who can distribute, what are the laws and restrictions for driving and working under the influence, taxation etc.? These are all things that can be worked out. But his could be exactly what our lagging economy needs, tax revenue, jobs and merchandise with huge potential for growth.
There are many who state that marijuana is bad for you because it contains so much more tar than cigarettes. Using Vapohead vaporizers can solve that problem as well. Since the pot isn’t actually burned but rather cooked, the harmful tar and carcinogens are never developed or released. The result is a much healthier experience. Before taking a stand either for or against legalization, educate yourself about the realities of marijuana use both in recreational settings and as a drug.